Mori ----- Original Message ----- From: Mori Kebba Jammeh <[log in to unmask]> To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Tuesday, June 06, 2000 12:08 PM Subject: Zimbabwe election Monitor resigns over diamond links > Culled from BBC African Service > > > > The monitors should ensure fair elections > > A senior Commonwealth official who was withdrawn from Zimbabwe last week as > an election observer has resigned amid allegations that he had close > business links with President Robert Mugabe's government. > A Commonwealth spokesman said Dr Moses Anafu resigned because of his links > with the Oryx diamond company. > > Dr Anafu has admitted receiving payments from Oryx which has concessions to > sell diamonds from areas of the Democratic Republic of Congo controlled by > Zimbabwean forces fighting there. > > But he denies having business links with Mr Mugabe's government. > > He said he was stepping down to avoid compromising the role of the > Commonwealth in the forthcoming elections in Zimbabwe scheduled for 24-25 > June. > > 'Inappropriate' role > > Earlier, Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon said Dr Anafu had > assured him that he had not yet been appointed a non-executive director and > had received no remuneration from the company. > > "Given Dr Anafu's confirmation of his involvement with these companies it is > inappropriate that he continue to be involved with the Commonwealth observer > mission in Harare," said Mr McKinnon in a statement. > > His business links were first reported in the London Times newspaper on > Saturday, which said Dr Anafu was a non-executive director of the company. > > > > > Don McKinnon: Embarrassed by assurances > > > According to the Financial Times of London, Dr Anafu, would be allocated > 10,000 shares when the company got listed and a 100,000 share option at the > price of one dollar which he could cash in before March 2003. > > The Oryx diamond mining concession is worth an estimated $1bn (£667m). It > has a profit sharing agreement with Osleg, a company owned by the Zimbabwean > Government and Comiex, a company owned by the Congolese government. > > Election fears > > Meanwhile, fears remain that the parliamentary elections in three weeks time > will not be free and fair, despite the presence of election observers from > the Commonwealth, European Union, Southern African Development Community and > United Nations. > > > > > President Mugabe has links with the diamond mines in DR Congo > > > Nine Kenyans arrived in Harare on Tuesday to join the EU election > observation team. > > The World Council of Churches have also announced plans to send a team of > observers. > > Recent reports suggest intimidation of opposition party supporters has > worsened with ruling party supporters attacking teachers and health workers. > > About 250 schools are said to have closed because of pre-election violence. > > More than 5,000 cases of political violence have been reported since > February, and at least 30 people, mainly opposition supporters, have been > killed. > > President Mugabe is also reported to have criticised white judges in > Zimbabwe as a "foreign cancer". > > The courts have angered Zimbabwe's Government in recent weeks by twice > ruling that the invasion of white farms backed by Mr Mugabe is illegal. > > > Mori > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html ----------------------------------------------------------------------------